Voldemort's Resurrection
by Dragonshade
Summary: Today is the day Harry Potter returns to the magical world and is finally beyond the protection of his family. It's finally time for Voldemort's plan, ten years in the making, to be put into motion. It's time for his resurrection.
1. Chapter 1

Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter.

* * *

For the first time in almost 10 years, Harry James Potter, age 11, stepped into the magical world. Like almost all of the muggleborn students, his entrance was by way of The Leaky Cauldron. The Leaky Cauldron wasn't particularly magical at first glance, but the astute observer would notice a number of odd things about this establishment. There was no electric lighting like in a muggle tavern. Instead, there were various lanterns placed in a number of places, most notably on top of the various sized tables. Another odd thing was the patrons of this tavern. They were adorned with odd clothing: pointed hats and long cloaks being the most popular. Other than the choice of clothing, most of the patrons looked fairly normal except for an old hag sitting at a table in the far corner whose skin seemed to be green. A full-fledged witch or wizard would have also noticed the containers of butterbeer and firewhiskey, neither of which were muggle drinks, sitting on top of the tables. Most of these odd things were not noticed by Harry, though, as he was only 11 and not quite fully indoctrinated into his wizard heritage. The only odd thing he did notice was the aforementioned clothing choices of this tavern's patrons.

So caught up in the odd clothing, Harry didn't quite catch what Rubeus Hagrid told the bartender. Whatever it was must have had to do with him as almost everyone got up and headed towards Hagrid and him. Harry soon found himself in a flurry of introductions and handshakes. The only people he would remember afterwards would be Dedalus Diggle, a wizard who had bowed to him once in public. His aunt had been quite upset at him for that offense, even though he hadn't actually done anything but stand there confused. The other person he would remember would be Doris Crockford, and the only reason he would remember her was because she came back three times to shake his hand again. The rest of the patrons were swept from his mind when he stepped into Diagon alley.

Harry really wished he had more heads or 360 degree vision because he wanted to look at everything at once. He saw blue and green smoke rolling in waves out of a tent to his left. A loud popping sound to his right caught his attention, but when he turned his head to look he noticed that whatever had happened was over as three wizards were standing around a wooden box muttering to each other and waving their wands. To the left of the wizards, a witch was coming out of a rainbow tent with what looked like a cat on a leash. To the right, Harry noticed another wizard wearing very large golden glasses grasping at what looked like nothing but air. Turning his head back to look in front of him, Harry saw a sign farther ahead that said something about cauldrons being on sale.

"Two-for-one-sale, pewter cauldrons," Harry read.

"Can't get your cauldron yet, Harry. Got to get some money first, which is why we need to head to Gringotts," Hagrid said as clapped Harry's shoulder.

The force of Hagrid's blow nearly brought Harry to his knees, but he was too preoccupied with what Gringotts could be. It sounded like the name of a monster to him. The image of a fierce dragon protecting a pile of gold came into being in Harry's mind. He was soon imagining Hagrid and he having to fight the dragon to get to the gold.

"Yep, Gringotts. The best, well, only wizard bank there ever was."

Hagrid's statement brought reality crashing onto Harry's shoulders as forcefully as Hagrid's earlier attempt at camaraderie.

"But Hagrid, I don't have any money," Harry said, panicked.

"You think your parent's left you nothin'? Nah, don't worry about that, Harry. You'll have plenty of money to get through your schoolin'," Hagrid replied. "Now come on. Gringotts is off this way."

The panic bubbling inside Harry quickly went away at Hagrid's words. Instead the excitement that had been there before seemed to be coming back, so Harry followed Hagrid with a spring in his step.

Gringotts was massive on the outside. The entire building, or at least the outer shell of it, was made out of white marble. The design was reminiscent of some of the buildings made in the Roman Empire that Harry had learned about while in school. Stepping through the dark, glossy doors, Harry noticed a sign about trespassers.

"Is Gringotts really that dangerous Hagrid?" Harry asked.

"Oh sure, don't want to mess with them goblins. That's for sure. They protect those vaults quite well. I even heard they had some dragons protecting some of the vaults down at the bottom levels. That's where the most valuable stuff is kept."

"Dragons? Those are real?" Harry's look of amazement brought a smile to Hagrid's face.

"Yep, though, they're a protected animal so you can't have one without going through a lot of trouble. I know 'cause I tried. I always wanted a dragon." Hagrid's smile settled into a kind of whimsical look before he slightly shook his head. "But yeah, dragons are real and pretty dangerous, so that's why you'd have to be crazy to mess with them goblins. Nothin's better protected if it's in one of Gringotts' vaults except if it was in Hogwarts."

Harry only took small note of Hagrid's last words as they finally finished walking through what was a kind of foyer into the main room. Huge rows of desks lined the walls. Behind every desk was a short pale creature. Their small stature evoked a kind of harmlessness, but the cruel smiles on their faces made Harry wonder if goblins liked to nod and agree at a person then stab them in the back a moment later. The goblins were doing a variety of things. Harry could see some looking at gems through jeweler's loupes, some counting money, and some doing paperwork.

"Hagrid?" A Scottish voice called out from the left.

Harry turned to see a tall, older woman coming towards them. Something about the way she looked and moved gave Harry a sort of no-nonsense, strict look about her. Perhaps it was her glasses and black hair worn in a tight bun, or maybe it was how briskly she was walking.

"Professor McGonagall! What are you doing here?" Hagrid said as the woman finally stepped in front of them.

"I should ask the same thing, Hagrid. I thought you left to take care of Mr. Potter days ago."

"Didn't Dumbledore tell you? I had some trouble with the relatives. Bad lot, them Dursley's."

McGonagall frowned and said, "I told Albus about them, but I guess there was no helping it."

McGonagall turned to look at Harry and her frown disappeared to be replaced by a look of slight embarrassment. "Oh, I apologize for my rudeness. I completely forgot to introduce myself. Mr. Potter, my name is Minerva McGonagall. I teach Transfiguration and am also the head of the Gryffindor house, the house your parents were in."

"It's a pleasure to meet you, Professor." Harry replied as he shook her hand. "Um, sorry, but what do you mean Gryffindor house, and what did you say you taught?"

"Hasn't Hagrid explained about the houses and the classes you'll be taking?" McGonagall replied with a slight glare toward Hagrid.

"Aw, I'm sorry, Professor McGonagall. I didn't tell him about that stuff. Sometimes I forget that Harry's new to our world," Hagrid said as he scratched the back of his head and looked down in contrition.

"You really should take more pride, Hagrid, in indoctrinating our new students into the magical world," McGonagall replied.

Harry didn't think it was possible to look even sorrier, but Hagrid somehow pulled it off after McGonagall's sharp words. He didn't like this feeling. Hagrid was becoming a friend of his after rescuing him from the Dursley's, and Harry didn't want him to feel bad.

"I think he's doing a smashing good job," Harry said with a bit of force behind his words.

Hagrid looked up to Harry and smiled.

McGonagall smiled slightly at the exchange and said, "Well, this is your first time Hagrid. It's understandable that you could make a mistake. The important thing is to acknowledge it, and then correct it. I'm helping a new muggleborn with her shopping today, so why don't we go shopping together. We can fill in Mr. Potter's gaps of knowledge about our world together, and he can get to know his new classmate at the same time."

Hagrid nodded his agreement and said, "Sure thing, Professor. That sounds like a good idea. A muggleborn, you said?"

"Yes, a Miss Hermione Granger. She's with her parents getting some pounds exchanged. Actually, I meant to take them here days ago, but Albus has been having trouble finding a Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher, and I've been helping him with that."

"What about that Quirrell fellow?" Hagrid asked.

"He messaged us, saying that something had come up and he couldn't fill the position," McGonagall replied.

"Perhaps that curse is taking out the Defense teachers before they can even last the year."

McGonagall was about to reply to Hagrid's statement when a little girl's voice shouted out. "Professor McGonagall, we're done."

Harry looked behind McGonagall to see a young girl with a large amount of brown, frizzy hair come running up. Her two parents were following her at a more sedate pace. The young girl's mouth slowly opened from a smile to a slight gape and her eyes widened when she looked up at the large frame of Hagrid. She must have realized she was staring as she closed her mouth and smiled.

"Miss Granger," McGonagall began, "I'd like you to meet Rubeus Hagrid, gamekeeper and keeper of the keys of Hogwarts, and Harry Potter. He'll be a classmate of yours. Hagrid, Mr. Potter, this is Hermione Granger."

"Oh, it's a pleasure to meet you, Mr. Hagrid, Harry. Are you a muggleborn as well, Harry? Wasn't it exciting when you received your letter? I was ever so excited when I received mine. It's amazing to think that magic is real. I mean, odd things would occasionally happen to me like that one time when all of Susan Beagle's hair just fell right off her head after she cornered me after class one time and made me ever so upset, but I would have never have thought that magic is real. I can't wait until I can go to Hogwarts, but I also have so much to learn before I go. Have you looked at all the books we need? I really wish we could have gotten the books much earlier. I mean, it's already the 31st, which means we only have one more month until school starts. I'm going to have to start studying right away."

Hermione's parents smiled in bemusement at their daughter's attempts to communicate. Her mother reached over and grabbed her shoulders. "Remember to breath, Hermione," she said.

That statement brought about amused chuckles from all the adults and a slight embarrassed red color on Hermione's face.

Hagrid's chuckle was more like a booming laugh, but he soon settled down to say, "It's nice to meet ya, Hermione. Please, just call me Hagrid."

"Hagrid, Mr. Potter," McGonagall said, "these are Miss Granger's parents, Henry and Jane Granger. They're dentists in the muggle world."

"It's nice to meet you Hagrid, Harry," Henry said as he reached over to shake hands. Henry looked down in amazement to see his hands dwarfed in comparison to Hagrid's hands. It was like Hagrid was an adult shaking hands with a small child.

"Now then," McGonagall said, "you don't mind if Hagrid and Mr. Potter join us in getting school supplies? I promised to help fill Mr. Potter's gaps of knowledge about the magical world."

"Oh, we don't mind at all," Jane said. "The more, the merrier."

"Very good. Hagrid, did you still need to take Mr. Potter down to his vault?"

"Ah, yea, but it shouldn't take long. You don't mind waiting for us?"

"You're going down to a vault?" Hermione interrupted, her voice rising in excitement. "Oh, could I please join you? I would love to see the tunnels underneath Gringotts. It sounded amazing when Professor McGonagall described it."

"Well," Hagrid said slowly, a bit unsure, "I don't mind if your parents don't."

"Would that be okay, Professor?" Henry asked.

"Absolutely," McGonagall replied. "Gringotts is one of the safest places in the magical world. Your daughter should find it an enlightening experience."

"Oh, thank you so much," Hermione said, bubbling with excitement.

"Well, let's get going then," Hagrid said with a smile.

The group split up with Harry, Hagrid, and Hermione walking over to one of the desks, while McGonagall and Hermione's parents walked over to the waiting area to sit down. When they reached the desk, Harry was able to get a closer view of what these goblins looked like. Their long fingers, sharp teeth, pale complexion, and very dark eyes reminded Harry of stories about monsters who stole bad children. These stories were, of course, not heard in the Dursley household as anything with fantastical creatures seemed to be forbidden under their roof. Instead, Harry had heard about these creatures while in school.

"Yes?" the goblin asked, a sneer pasted across his face.

Hagrid cleared his throat and stood a little straighter. "We're here to see Mr. Potter's vault."

"Does Mr. Potter have his key?" the goblin asked. His eyes glared down almost daring them to say no.

"Oh, where did I put that?" Hagrid said to himself. He reached deep into his trench coat, pulling out a plastic bag filled with what looked to be dog food. He handed this to Harry and said, "Could you hold this a second?"

Hagrid reached back into his trench coat, pulled out a red plastic ball, shoved it back inside, and finally pulled out a small golden key.

"Ah, here you go," Hagrid said as he handed the key to the goblin.

As the goblin looked over the key, Hagrid grabbed the bag from Harry and shoved it back inside one of his pockets.

"Everything seems to be in order. Griphook will show you down to your vault, Mr. Potter."

A new goblin suddenly appeared between Harry and Hermione. Taking the key back from the goblin, Hagrid turned to face the new goblin.

"Follow me, please."

They followed Griphook to the side of the main hall where a number of doors were. He opened one and gestured through the door. Hagrid went in first, followed by Harry and Hermione. They entered what looked to be the side of a tunnel. This part of Gringotts wasn't made of marble; instead, it was made of rock and dirt just like in a cave. Looking to the left, Harry saw torches lining the tunnel. The tunnel, itself, seemed to slope downwards before veering around a corner. Looking to the right, he saw a similar scene except the tunnel sloped upwards. Tracks were laid out in front of him on top of which was a cart waiting for passengers.

Behind Harry, Griphook cleared his throat and walked around them. Grunting slightly as he pulled himself into the cart, Griphook looked back to the three of them. Gesturing to the empty part of the cart, he said, "It'll be tight, but all of you should fit."

Hagrid got into the cart and helped Harry and Hermione into it as well. Once everyone was inside, Griphook pulled a lever, and the cart started moving. Veering around the corner, the cart sped up until the torches lining the tunnel started to look like a line of light to Harry. It was a bit bumpy, but Harry was enjoying himself. He looked over to Hermione, who had a slight queasy look. Looking up, Harry saw a similar look on Hagrid.

Leaning down to Griphook, Hagrid muttered, "Doesn't this thing go a little slower?"

"One speed only," Griphook replied.

Suddenly, the ground beneath them opened into a massive cavern. Harry tried looking over the edge of the cart and down into the abyss, but Hagrid pulled him back, looking even a little sicker. Harry hoped Hagrid didn't vomit. His massive size probably meant that when Hagrid did get sick, it would be quite a big mess.

The ride kept going, farther and farther down, but after what seemed like five minutes, Harry wondered what was taking so long. Could the tunnels be that deep? Hagrid seemed to think the same thing as he leaned down again and muttered, "It's been some time. Are we nearing the vault?"

"Almost. A tunnel collapsed just a little while ago, so we had to take a detour," Griphook replied.

A few minutes later, the cart finally started to slow down. Harry suddenly noticed how cold it was. It made sense though that it would be colder this deep in the ground. He almost wished he had a jacket.

"Finally," Hagrid groaned.

"Actually," Griphook said, "we're not there yet. There seems to be an object on the tracks coming up. It's in the way."

Veering around another corner, the cart continued to slow down. Harry looked around Hagrid to see what looked like another cart sitting on the tracks. There were two stone platforms on either side of the tracks. The lighting was minimal with only one torch on a column to the cart's left. Shadows played at the light's edge, and darkness continued beyond that. A cold wind blew across them, raising the hair on the back of Harry's neck.

When the cart finally stopped behind the other cart, figures flew out of the darkness. Black capes and skull masks surrounded them. Darkness encroached them.

"Get down!" Hagrid cried out.

Harry and Hermione were pulled underneath Hagrid's massive body. Harry grabbed onto Hermione's hand, squeezing tight, not knowing what was happening but feeling fear rise inside of him. He heard loud bangs around him, and then Hagrid's body jerked back and forth. His body grew limp, landing heavy on them. The massive weight was too much for Harry. He could hardly take in a breath. Suddenly, the weight vanished. Harry looked up to see an unconscious Hagrid floating in the air. At the front of the cart, Griphook lay unconscious. The figures in dark clothing and skull masks surrounded them. Red lights flashed, and then Harry's sight grew dark.


	2. Chapter 2

Lucius Malfoy looked down at the unconscious Potter brat through his skull mask. It felt good to be wearing the old Death Eater uniform. The mask was snug on his face, and the dark robes blended well with the shadows. The purpose of the uniform was to cause terror and fear in the eyes of their victims. The fear in the little brat's eyes when they had surrounded him brought back so many pleasant memories of causing mayhem and destruction with his fellow Death Eaters. It was disappointing when those times had to end, and it was all because of this child, this half-blood. What was so special about this brat that caused the downfall of his master, the Dark Lord?

Well, it was no matter. Soon, the Dark Lord's plan would be complete, and he would arise to his formal glory. Already, the plan seemed to be working. They got word from a lookout at the Leaky Cauldron when the brat had arrived, and it hadn't taken long to get into position.

A pitiful mewling caught Lucius' ears. Looking up, he saw Quirrell hiding behind one of the columns. He was whispering to himself, eyes scrunched in pain and hands covered his ears.

"Let me see," a voice called out, commanding and deadly.

Lucius smirked. The weak fool couldn't stand against the powerful mind of his master. It didn't take long for the idiot to stumble forward, crying out. He stood amidst the Dark Lord's true followers and cowered.

"Yes, master," Quirrell squealed.

Reaching behind his head, Quirrell began to unwrap his turban. The dark purple cloth looked black in the limited light. Around and around Quirrell's hand went until finally the cloth fell to the ground. Kneeling before the Potter brat, he did a quick one-eighty.

Lucius suppressed the grimace at seeing his master's disfigured face on the back of Quirrell's head. Thankfully, his occlumency was strong enough to hide the distaste at his master's appearance.

"Potter," the Dark Lord whispered, hate evident in his voice and glaring red eyes.

Quirrell's arm suddenly jerked behind him, reaching out towards the Potter brat. His fingers glided along the brat's face, smoke hissing upward at the contact. Quirrell's arm jerked back forward.

"Master," Quirrell cried out. "It burns me."

"Quiet," the Dark Lord commanded. His red eyes glared down at the Potter brat a moment more before shifting his gaze to the other body. "The girl?" the Dark Lord asked.

Lucius turned to the body of the goblin and whipped his wand forward. A blue light streaked out, hitting the creature squarely. The goblin jerked awake and awkwardly stood up, a hand to his head.

"Did you have to hit so hard?" the goblin harshly asked.

"Yes," Lucius answered simply. "The girl. Who is she?"

"Just an idiot muggleborn. Her excitement was practically spewing forth from her mouth at the chance to take a simple cart ride. Of course, what happens when she gets on the cart? She can't talk in fear of vomiting. You humans are so weak. You can't even handle a cart ride."

Lucius saw the Dark Lord's eyes narrow. He knew that if the circumstances were different and the goblin wasn't so important in everyone getting out safely, his master would have ordered the creature's death at that moment. Instead, the Dark Lord said, "A mudblood? Are you sure?"

"Of course. The girl's muggle parents exchanged some pounds," the goblin said, a look of disgust on his face. "Crazy muggles with their paper notes. Paper is not real money. Gold. Silver. Copper. Those are real."

"Enough," the Dark Lord said, stopping the goblin's tirade. "Lucius, fortune favors us. Your job has been done for you."

Lucius bowed slightly in acknowledgment before asking, "What should we do about the half-giant?"

"Leave him," the Dark Lord ordered, a cruel smile appearing on his disfigured face. "Hagrid is an old friend. I wouldn't want him to miss out on the pain of failing that old fool."

The Dark Lord chuckled slightly and then said, "Avery, it's your turn."

Avery stepped forward pulling a wicked dagger from his robes. Kneeling down, he took Potter's arm and made a deep cut. Gathering the blood in a vial, he corked it and stashed it back into his robes.

"Macnair," the Dark Lord said next, "Potter is in your hands. Do not fail me. Don't bother coming back without Potter or the objective because I will hunt you down personally and kill you if you fail."

"Yes, master," Macnair said as he bent down to pick up Potter.

Macnair's mission was perhaps one of the most dangerous parts of the Dark Lord's plan. It had to be done though, according to his master. Lucius saw the reason for it as well since he had been helping the Dark Lord by greasing hands with galleons, first, to talk with Rookwood in Azkaban, and then, to make sure Macnair could finish his part without too much trouble. It wasn't too big of a dip in his coffers, but he would have preferred if some of the other Death Eaters had helped in the expenses. However, he was one of the richest Death Eaters, and he was also the only one with an invisibility cloak.

"Lucius," the Dark Lord said, "since your job has been done for you, carry the mudblood."

"Yes, master," Lucius said, not bothering to hide his disgust at the idea of touching the abomination. He considered for a moment to just float the body all the way to the surface, but he realized that it would be too far. If something happened, he would need all of his magical strength.

The goblin grunted, interrupting his musings. "Hey, what about the deal?"

The Dark Lord's eyes narrowed in the goblin's direction. He said, "Show him, Lucius,"

Reaching deep into his robes, Lucius pulled out a magnificent foot-long dagger. Inlaid into the pommel and guard were a number of small, glittering emeralds. The blade itself sparkled silver. Even with only one small lamp to illuminate it, anyone could tell that this dagger was masterfully crafted.

Looking back towards the goblin, Lucius saw the creature's breath had quickened. His clawed hands reached forward, grasping at the air, closer and closer to the dagger. Merlin, the creature seemed to be turned on just from the sight of it. Before the goblin could touch the dagger, he hid it back in his robes.

"When we near the surface," Lucius said, "you may have it."

The goblin grumbled deep in his chest. Eyes glaring, he said, "You have no right. That dagger is goblin-made. Crafted by Ragnuk the Second, son of Ragnuk the First, it belongs rightfully to the goblins."

"Yes," Lucius replied, "and you'll have it back as soon as we near the surface."

The goblin grumbled again, pausing a moment before reaching into a pocket to pull out a horn. He raised the horn to his lips and blew hard. The sound that came forth from the horn seemed more like the sound of moving earth than an actual horn sound. Deep in one of crevices in the side of the tunnel, a light appeared and grew larger as the door from where they had entered earlier opened once again. Two goblins appeared, one holding aloft a bright lamp.

The Death Eaters started walking towards the exit. Lucius took a moment to grab the mudblood and swing her over his left shoulder. Looking back as he entered the new tunnel, he saw the goblin glare at him before turning back towards the unconscious half-giant. Lucius decided then and there that he would kill that creature at the first opportunity.

* * *

Harry slowly opened his eyes. It was so bright, though, that he shut them again very quickly. The last thing he remembered was more like a nightmare, figures in dark clothing wearing skull masks swooping down and bright flashes of red light. He started to panic when suddenly a wave of calmness washed over him. There was no need to panic. Everything would be alright. He just needed to stand up for now.

Harry spun around, getting on his hands and knees. Leaning back, he slowly stood up. He wondered if he should open his eyes and see where he was before another wave of calmness washed over him. It didn't matter where he was. Everything would be alright. He just needed to keep standing.

A large piece of material was draped over Harry. It felt a little bit like silk to him. He stood there a moment more before realizing he should open his eyes now. His eyes slowly opened again, but the brightness of the sun didn't bother him this time. Then, he felt like walking forward next to a man who stood in front of him, so that's what he did.

They walked for some length of time. Harry didn't bother keeping track of where they were walking to or how long they had been walking. He just needed to keep walking with this man. They walked forwards and did a number of left and right turns. They even walked down a few times. Then they stopped.

They had stopped before, but this time was different. During the other times, Harry knew that after stopping for some time, he would need to start walking again. This time, though, he knew he should pay attention to what was in front of him. Looking forwards, he saw a row of glowing orbs. Then, Harry felt like reaching out and taking one of those orbs. He paused though, wondering if he really should. Suddenly, the feeling of taking the orb grew stronger, so Harry reached forward and grabbed the orb. He then handed it to the man standing next to him. Then he started walking again.

After some length of time and some more walking, he felt the man grab his arm. Suddenly, the strangest feeling washed over him. If he could compare it to something, Harry would say that it felt like his entire body was being squeezed down some tube.

* * *

Minerva felt the guilt rising in her stomach as she looked at the grieving parents. She wanted to look away from their tears, but she steadfastly kept her gaze on them. She had failed them by not being there when their child was kidnapped. The guilt was even worse because Minerva liked Henry and Jane Granger. Some of the muggleborn parents she had talked to over the years were frightened, angry, and defensive. The Grangers showed only confusion at first, then curiosity and wonderment at the gift of their child, Hermione.

A horrible, heart-wrenching sob that came from behind Minerva reminded her that she wasn't the only one feeling guilty. She looked back at the sobbing mess of Hagrid before walking over and patting his shaking shoulders.

"Hagrid," Minerva tried saying over the sound of his tears, "you did the best you could. We'll get them back."

Minerva hoped Hagrid hadn't heard the slight hitch of doubt in her voice. Another heart-wrenching sob came out, though this time it was from Jane. Looking back and forth from the grieving parents and the guilt-ridden Hagrid, she felt a loss of what she could do in this situation.

Minerva was about to ask Hagrid to go back to Hogwarts so that she could concentrate on comforting the Grangers when the door opened. They were in a small waiting room so the sound didn't have to go very far to reach Minerva's ears. She looked over at the opening door to see Albus walking in with a worried look on his face.

The guilt she felt grew in strength with Albus' presence, but at the same time Minerva felt better that he was here, knowing that he might have some sort of plan to rescue the children.

Albus glanced at the grieving parents for a moment before gesturing over towards Minerva. She quickly walked up to him.

"Minerva," Albus whispered, "are the parents well enough to talk?"

"Jane is pretty inconsolable right now, but any news might be welcome."

"Well, here's hoping neither of them hit me," Albus said with a sad smile.

Albus walked forward and knelt in front of the Grangers. Jane's tears let up a little as the calm voice of Albus spoke.

"Mr. and Mrs. Granger, my name is Albus Dumbledore. I am the Headmaster at Hogwarts."

"Is-" Henry's voice broke, but he cleared his throat and continued. "Is there any news about our daughter?"

"Nothing about where she is now, but let me tell you what we've learned so far. First, though, let me say that I am truly sorry about what has happened. We take the safety of the children as top priority, and I want you to know that I will do everything in my power to find your daughter."

Albus leaned back and, belying his age, settled down on the floor with surprising grace. His long, white beard fell over his crossed legs onto the floor.

"Now," Albus continued, "from Hagrid's description, the perpetrators are part of a group of wizards and witches called Death Eaters. They followed a very dark wizard by the name of Voldemort some years back. It was a pretty dark time for all of us, but fortunately that dark wizard was defeated. It was about 10 years ago, in fact, on Halloween. He had visited the Potter family-"

"That boy," Henry interrupted. "The one we met with Hagrid. His name was Harry Potter, wasn't it?"

"Yes," Albus replied, "he was the only one that survived that night. Both of his parents were killed."

Jane sniffed, trying to hold back the tears from coming back. She whispered, "That poor boy."

"Unfortunately," Albus continued, "many of Voldemort's followers blamed Harry Potter for his demise. In fact, everyone back then believed Mr. Potter was somehow responsible even if he was only a baby. He became a sort of celebrity. You probably couldn't find a single child in our world who hasn't heard of Harry Potter, the boy-who-lived. In any case, I think Mr. Potter's kidnapping has to do with the fact that the Death Eaters blame him. Your daughter was, unfortunately, in the wrong place at the wrong time."

Albus sighed as he stroked his beard. "The goblins informed us that a tunnel had collapsed around the time Mr. Potter and your daughter went to his vault. The collapse unearthed a previously unknown tunnel that led straight to the surface. The goblins said they found human tracks in this tunnel. Our own ministry employees investigated the point of entry from the surface where they found evidence of a group of people who had teleported away. Unfortunately, they used a portkey, a magical device used for teleportation, to do this. It's impossible to track where they went since the area from where they left had no wards keeping track of portkey travel."

"So," Henry said, his arms tightening around his wife, "you have no idea where they took our daughter and have no means of finding her either."

"No," Albus replied. "There is a way. You see, the unfortunate circumstance of being near Mr. Potter was the reason for your daughter's kidnapping. I think this is also the reason that your daughter can be found. Because of Mr. Potter's past, I took measures in case anything like this happened while he was growing up away from the protection of Hogwarts. I have a way to find Mr. Potter, which means I have a way to find your daughter."

Henry sighed with a bit of relief, but then said with a bit of apprehension, "how long?"

"About two hours."

"A lot can happen in two hours, Professor. Do you think Hermione will be…hurt or…" Henry's voice trailed off as his eyes clenched in pain at the horrible thought.

"Let me reassure you, Mr. and Mrs. Granger," Albus replied. "The fact that your daughter wasn't killed when Mr. Potter was taken means there is a good chance they won't do it in the two hours it will take to find them."

To Minerva, Albus' words didn't comfort the Grangers as well as he probably hoped.

"Now," Albus said as he stood up, "I should probably get to work on finding your daughter. If you would like, Minerva can take you to Hogwarts. That way you'll know any new developments that come up."

The Grangers nodded as they stood up and walked over to Minerva. Albus followed and pulled out a sock from his robes. With a few whispered words and a flick of his wand, the sock glowed blue. He handed the sock to Minerva.

"Minerva, just say, 'Hogwarts', but you'll have to do it outside of Gringotts. They've increased the security and banned apparition and portkey travel in and out of the building. Could you take them to the guest rooms near the Hospital wing?"

Nodding in agreement, Minerva turned to leave with the Grangers. As they walked through the door into the hallway, Minerva looked back to see Albus standing in front of Hagrid, a hand on his shoulder. Albus' whispered words were cut off as the door closed.

Minerva and the Grangers walked out of the hallway and into the main hall of Gringotts. Looking around, Minerva saw a number of panicked Ministry workers running around. In the center of the hall a group of people stood behind the Minister of Magic, Cornelius Fudge, as he talked quite loudly with an old goblin who had his own retinue of goblins behind him.

Circling around the large group, Minerva quickly escorted the Grangers outside of Gringotts. Informing them that the sock was a portkey that would take them to Hogwarts, she made sure they were touching the sock when she said the phrase that would activate the portkey.

It didn't take long to escort the Grangers from the entrance Hall to one of the guest rooms near the Hospital wing. Looking back every now and then, Minerva saw that the Grangers hardly took any note of their surroundings. Well, she didn't blame them for that. After making sure they were settled, Minerva quickly made her way to Albus' office.

She didn't have to wait long before Albus showed. He quickly strolled in and reached for his stash of lemon drops as he sat down.

"Lemon drop," he offered.

"No, thank you Albus," Minerva answered, pausing a moment before asking, "a collapsed tunnel?"

Albus sighed as he popped a lemon drop into his mouth. "I know what you're thinking Minerva. With the amount of magical protection the goblins have in those tunnels, a collapse should not have happened, and if it was man-made, the source would have been found too quickly for the Death Eaters. They wouldn't have had time to grab the two children and leave. It's unfortunate that our current treaty with goblins doesn't allow us to send anyone to investigate inside the tunnels. I believe Cornelius Fudge is trying to get the goblins to allow it. You probably saw him in the main hall."

"Will he be able to do it?" Minerva asked.

"No," Albus replied, "but I don't think the goblins not allowing it as anything to do with the Minister's political skills. I'm afraid the goblins must have made some sort of deal and let this group of Death Eaters kidnap the children."

"What? Why would they do that?"

"I don't know," Albus said, his eyebrows furrowed in thought. "The only thing I can think of is perhaps one of the great goblin treasures, but the only one I know of that isn't already in the hands of the goblins is the Sword of Gryffindor."

There was a moment of silence before Albus shook his head and said, "Well, right now it's no matter how it was done. That can be worried about later. We need to find the children first. Minerva, could you find Filius and meet me down in Severus' office?"

"What's your plan, Albus?"

With a bit of a smile, Albus flicked his wand at one of drawers of his desk. Opening it, he reached in and pulled out a small vial.

"A few days after we left Harry at his relatives, I procured some of his blood," Albus said as he held up the vial.

"Of course," Minerva said. "That's why you need Filius and Severus. You're planning on using the _Sanguineus Indago_ spell."

"Correct. Unfortunately, it will take about an hour and half to complete because of the potion part of the spell, but once it's done we should have an object that can lead us straight to Mr. Potter's position. I'm just glad Mr. Potter hadn't gotten his wand yet. As soon as a witch or wizard chooses his first wand or, as Ollivander would say it, as soon as a wand chooses a witch or wizard for the first time, the raw, uncontrolled magic of the child undergoes a maturity of sorts as it connects with the controlled magic of a wand. Mr. Potter's blood wouldn't have worked once he got his wand as the change in magic symbolically equates to a change in the blood."

"Albus, you're starting to lecture. I'm aware of the effects of a child's first wand just as you are."

"Oh, I'm sorry. After so many years, I guess I can't stop being a professor. Well, let's get to work."

Albus started heading towards the door, but Minerva stayed in her seat, a frown plastered on her face. Albus stopped when he noticed Minerva not moving.

"Minerva?"

"Why didn't they just kill the children, Albus?" Minerva asked. "Why kidnap both of them?"

Albus sighed and said, "I'm not sure. The only reason I can think of at the moment is something I'd rather not consider because it would mean Mr. Potter and Miss Granger are in a lot pain right now and will be for the next hour and a half. Whatever the reason, we should hurry and get to them as fast as possible."

"You're right. Let's go," Minerva said as she stood up.

* * *

Author's Note: Ah, sorry about the long update time. I kind of got distracted with some other stuff. Hopefully, the next chapter won't take as long. I hope you like the story so far. The spell Dumbledore and McGonagall are talking about near the end is just something I made up. I never took Latin, so I apologize for the mangled spell name. The first word means blood and the second word means to track like with hounds, so together it sort of means blood tracker spell. In the next chapter, we'll see what's going on over at Voldemort's hide-away.


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